


The Silence Speaks His Name

by Bluegreen_notetonote



Category: Voltron - Fandom, klance - Fandom
Genre: Asexual Pidge | Katie Holt, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Black Paladin Shiro (Voltron), Blue Paladin Lance (Voltron), Gay Keith (Voltron), Gay Matt Holt, M/M, Mute!Lance, Mutual Pining, Red Paladin Keith (Voltron), Voltron, klance, secret feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2019-04-07
Packaged: 2019-05-26 08:01:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14996405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluegreen_notetonote/pseuds/Bluegreen_notetonote
Summary: When Lance gets injured during a battle and loses his voice, Keith never leaves his side.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A new update will be up tomorrow, I plan on posting once every 2 days until I have at least 10 chapters, then ill post bi-weekly. I hope you enjoy!

In the heat of the battle, Lance didn’t see the Galra soldier behind him. His brain was exhausted from the days of non-stop training and fighting. It wasn’t until he heard Pidge scream his name and he felt the blade on his throat as he turned around. There was a shot, as Lance fell to the floor. Keith, being the closest paladin to him grabbed his head and lifted it up. Lance couldn’t focus on the words coming out of Keith’s mouth. The last thing lance remembered before drifting off was his own voice 

“I’m sorry I let you down” it was weak and distant, put the pain in his voice was evident. 

A week had gone by, Lance was still in a healing pod. The paladins wouldn’t leave his side. They rotated shifts, each staying with him for a portion of the day while the others trained or fought off Galra fleets. It wasn’t the same without him, not only could they not form Voltron, but they couldn’t focus on fighting without knowing if their friend was okay or not. Keith took Lance’s injuries the hardest, putting the blame on himself. Keith tried his best not to show it. It wasn’t until Pidge found him crying in the bathroom that they realized what he was going through.

“It's my fault! It should have been me taking that hit, not him. I should have been faster” Keith sobbed into the sink. Pidge approached him slowly, not wanting to startle him and put a hand on his shoulder. Keith sunk to the floor, unable to fight back and hide what he was feeling. 

“Keith, buddy, this isn’t on you. None of us could see this coming, we are doing all that we can to help him get better. Coran said his condition is stabilizing, he will be okay, I promise you” Pidge whispered to Keith. 

“You don’t understand Pidge, I should have been faster. I should have been there to shoot the Galra soldier. It’s my fault Lance is hurt. You guys are my family, I failed as a Paladin. As a friend” Keith continued to sob, chest hurting from the heavy breathing. He couldn’t seem to stop. 

“Keith, We all wish we could have done better. All we can do now is wait for him.” Pidge helped Keith calm down, understanding that he didn’t want the other paladins to see him in this state. That evening, Keith insisted that he be the one to watch Lance while the others trained and plotted against the Galra. After Pidge explained to Shiro and Hunk that Keith was taking this harder than everyone thought, nobody protested. 

This was how it stayed for the next week. In the morning, Keith trained harder than ever, for hours at a time. In the evening he would sit next to Lance’s pod and just talk to him. More days than not, Coran found him passed out next to the pod in the morning, Coran didn’t have the courage to move him. It wasn’t until Keith passed out during training that Coran and Allura insisted that Keith get more rest. 

It was the first day of the 3rd week in the pod that lance woke up. Keith of course, was sitting next to the pod. When Keith heard the hiss of air releasing from the pod and 4 in the morning, he jumped up and caught lance before he fell. Coran had given all of the paladins watches that would allow them to notify him if Lance woke up during their shift. Keith had hit the button on the watch right before Lance fell into his arms. As Coran came into the room, Lance opened his eyes and awoke to a worried Keith staring at him. 

Lance, of course, was too exhausted to protest. Keith laid Lance onto a bed that Coran had set up that would still measure his vitals. As Lance sat up, Keith just sat quietly in the corner. Coran checked his vitals and made sure everything was fine before removing the bandage on Lance’s neck. Under the bandage was a long purple scar that was almost lightning bolt shaped, from when the Galra soldier sliced Lance’s throat. Luckily, the cut wasn’t deep enough to cause major damage. The blood loss and the impact of the fall cause the extended healing time. At this point, everyone was just glad that Lance was awake. 

Soon after Lance was settled, the other paladins flooded into the room. Coran was the first to speak, “My boy, how are you feeling?” he asked softly. Lance opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out, the look of shock and panic was evident. He tried again but still, nothing. Lance put his hand on his throat and winced. 

“What’s going on Coran? Has his throat not healed completely?” Shiro asked, concerned. 

“It seems that way, there was more damage to his throat than we initially thought so he  
unfortunately won’t be able to speak for quite some time. I still need to run some tests but his voice will return eventually. The slice on his throat was just surface level, not enough to permanently damage his vocal chords but enough to slow down the healing quite drastically” Coran reassured the group. “Lance, you won’t be able to speak, but you should be able to be up on your feet by tomorrow. You will have to take it easy for the next few dobashes.” Coran continued. 

Lance opened his mouth to acknowledge him but sighed when he remembered he couldn’t speak. He just nodded. As everyone except Keith left the room lance thought to himself, “This is going to be hard.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is a little shorter, working on the next one now, Enjoy.

Recap: As everyone except Keith left the room lance thought to himself, “This is going to be hard.” 

It was the 3rd day of Lance’s silence and Keith refused to leave Lance alone. Whenever Lance would need help of any kind, Keith was there. While Pidge worked on a device that allowed him to communicate, Keith was Lance’s voice. Unknown to the rest of the Paladins, Lance knew sign language and tried communicating with it many times. The other Paladins just grew confused, so Lance stopped trying. Keith, on the other hand, would spend his nights learning and practicing, in an attempt to make the situation easier for Lance.  
Since Keith spent his days with Lance and his nights practicing sign language, he got little sleep and began crashing during the day. Nobody on the team seemed to notice, except for Lance of course. He was beginning to grow concerned since his friend was disappearing for hours at a time. That was until he found Keith asleep in the training room. Lance, unable to speak to wake him up, shook Keith out of his slumber. That was Lance’s mistake. Keith instantly went into fight mode and accidentally backhanded Lance in the face. It wasn’t until he realized who he hit that he rushed to Lance’s side. 

“Holy shit Lance, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know it was you!” Keith rambled trying to help the boy up.  
Lance just waved it off and gave Keith a sympathetic smile. He started signing something to Keith, knowing that he wouldn’t understand. 

_Even when you smack me in the face you still manage to look cute._

Keith stared at him confused, he had only learned basic signs and couldn’t quite understand what Lance was saying. Lance just smirked and walked Keith back to his room. When they approached the door Lance poked Keith in the chest and motioned for Keith’s bed. It didn’t take sign language for Keith to understand that Lance was telling him to go to sleep. 

“Fine Lance I’ll get some sleep. But wake me up in an hour, I don’t want to miss the team meeting.” Keith laid on his bed. As Lance was walking out, Keith shouted “Hey Lance, and this time i'll try not to smack you”. Keith smiled widely. Lance signed back

_I’d smack you if it weren’t for that amazing smile._

Keith, still confused, replied, “Lance I can’t understand what you’re saying.” Lance just walked out of the room, smiling. In the hallway was Pidge, walking to her room. “What’s got you all happy Lance? Finally confess to your boyfriend that you love him?” Pidge teased. Unable to respond, Lance just frantically shook his head. “I know you looooooove him” Pidge continued. Lance began to wave his arms in disagreement as his face turned a light shade of crimson. “I mean you aren’t saying no, so it must be true” Pidge concluded before closing her door. Lance signed to nobody in particular 

_Is it that obvious?_

An hour had passed since Keith fell asleep. Lance, after coming back from the training room all sweaty, headed directly for Keith’s room to wake him. Lance tried to shake Keith, but he didn’t budge. “Dear god is this boy not getting any sleep?” Lance thought to himself. He tried shaking Keith again, more violently this time, but still no results. Lance, without many options left, grabbed the only pillow that Keith wasn’t using, kneeled by his bed, and proceeded to smack the sleeping paladin in the face. 

Keith, repeating the events that unfolded earlier that day, went into attack mode and jumped up. He managed to smack his forehead against Lance’s, fall off of the bed, and land directly onto Lance who was on the floor in pain. Keith, who was also in pain laid still for a second, not realizing the position he was in. After he felt a movement underneath him, he opened his eyes and was confronted with lance staring at him from underneath him, face redder than ever. 

Keith jumped up and coughed in attempt to break the awkwardness. Lance just stood slowly and dusted himself off, avoiding eye contact. 

“T-Thanks uh.. Lance for waking me up. Sorry about that.” Keith said. “Uh we should probably head to the team meeting now” He continued. Lance just nodded as both boys walked down the hall in silence.


	3. A Much needed Break Awaits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry I haven't been updating, I've got so much going on at home but thank you guys so much for all the support. I'll try and have 3 chapters out this week to make up for my absence, I hope you enjoy. This chapter is quite short but the next one is going to be long, I promise.

Recap: “T-Thanks uh.. Lance for waking me up. Sorry about that.” Keith said. “Uh, we should probably head to the team meeting now” He continued. Lance just nodded as both boys walked down the hall in silence.. 

As Keith and Lance walked into the room and sat down, Allura began to speak. “Alright team! Now that everyone is here we shall discuss the upcoming events”. Everyone at the table shared the same look of confusion. There had been no news of any upcoming events as far as the paladins were concerned. Shiro was the first to speak up, “What upcoming events? Was there news of a potential Galra attack?” he said, confused. 

Allura smiled, “Quite the opposite actually. Everyone has been working so hard, especially you Lance I know how hard this recovery must be. Since there has been a lack of emergency lately we are going to strengthen the coalition and meet with an ally on their home planet. Their planet resembles what you on Earth call a beach”. Lance snapped his head up at the word. He had become homesick and had been longing for the beach back home. 

Lance frantically scribbled on the paper in front of him and violently poked Keith, silently signaling for him to read it. “Lance wants to know how long we will be able to stay for after the meeting with our allies,” Keith asked Allura. Lance had the widest grin on his face while awaiting the answer. “Our allies here have a very strict tradition, the first day is a feast and the second is the council meeting along with a party. They also require we stay at the very least 5 moon passes to appreciate their planet and relax” Allura answered. 

Lance all but jumped out of his seat. He frantically signed “ A whole week? I get to stay at a beach planet for a whole week”. Everyone just looked at him, confused like always. “So we don’t have to fight for a whole week? Not that I don’t appreciate the break but what if something happens?” Pidge chimed in. “Well, of course, you will have your lions and our allies, the Palmayans, are known for providing the most exquisite attire that also acts as armor. They are a peaceful planet but I discussed with them beforehand and they understand that you might need weapons as a precaution and are allowing all of you to bring your bayards” Allura responded. Pidge simply nodded in acknowledgment. “I must warn you paladins, Bayard forms on this planet have been known to change. When I was on this planet as a child with my father and the former paladins their weapons changed drastically. My fathers went from a sword to a bow an arrow. Be ready to adjust if necessary”. She continued 

Hunk finally spoke up “Hey Coran, does the training facility have different weapons that we can try out just to get a bit of practice before the trip?” he asked. “Oh yes my boy, I can show all of you later tonight and we can spend all day tomorrow getting a bit of training in. We want to be in tip top shape, I did a bit of weapons training myself with the former paladins and it is quite enjoyable once you get the hang of it.” Coran responded. Allura stood up, “It's settled, paladins please eat and then meet with Coran in 4 Vargas to get a run through of the system. Make sure you all get some rest and be ready for training tomorrow!”. 

The paladins all nodded in agreement and went off to the kitchen, except for Lance who waited behind for a second. As Keith was about to leave the room he felt a tug on his wrist and turned around to see Lance handing him a note. Keith unfolded it and read it “Meet me in my room after dinner :) - Your favorite sharpshooter”. Keith went to ask Lance why but he had already left the room, leaving Keith to wonder what Lance wanted to see him for.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry If there are any typos guy, it's quite late where I am and I'm a bit tired but when you get some inspiration you gotta write. Hope you enjoy.

As Keith walked into the kitchen, he could feel his heart race with anticipation. There was no reason for him to be worried, he thought. Yet he couldn’t understand why he was so nervous. Keith shoved the note into his pocket and walked over to the table where everyone was sat. 

“Good job today guys. I’m glad everyone has been doing well even with all the setbacks. This planet is going to give each of us a much-needed break” Shiro said with a smile. The others mumbled in agreement, their mouths stuffed with food. 

“Especially Lance and Keith, you guys have been really bonding and working together to get around Lance’s predicament. I’m glad to see you two get along” Shiro continued. Keith’s ears went a light shade of red as he heard the word “bonding”. He placed his hand on his chest as he felt his heart rate speed up. He looked over at Lance and saw a light blush on his face. The silence at the table soon became awkward and Keith did his best to lighten the situation,

“Who knew all we needed was for Lance to shut up for us to get along” he teased. Lances flustered look soon disappeared as he became slightly offended. Then Lance had a look on his face that Keith couldn't quite understand. It wasn’t until he saw Lance reach for his spoon and fill it with fluorescent space goo that Keith understood. Everything seemed to move slowly, Lance aimed his spoon at Keith and before he could react he felt the cold slimy food hit his face. 

The table fell silent, and all eyes darted toward Keith. For a second Lance had a look of terror in his eyes, Keith was fuming. His snarl turned into a grin as he grabbed his plate of food and hurled it at Lance. 

“Oh it’s on!” Keith yelled as he dove out of his seat and over the kitchen island as an attempt to take cover. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lance using what looked like military hand gestures to communicate with the other paladins. They all jumped into position and formed a wall, each armed with bowls of food goo. Keith’s face went white. He stuck his hands up in defense over the edge of the island, 

“Guys we can talk about this” Keith bargained.

“You asked for a war, so it's a war you’ll get” Pidge yelled getting ready to fire. 

“Come on Shiro, we’re brothers. You can’t do this, you’re supposed to be on my side” Keith made a final attempt to stop his awaiting demise. 

“All is fair in love and war Kogane” Shiro chuckled. “Ready... Set…” he continued. Keith braced for impact and attempted to shield himself with his jacket “Fire!”. Four bowls of goo came hurling at Keith with deadly precision and each one covered him in green substance. He slowly turned around and stared directly at the four grinning paladins. 

“Alright guys you had your fun” Keith sighed, wiping his eyes. “How about we hug it out?”. All but one of the paladins scatter, leaving Lance in the corner to fend for himself. 

“Come on Keith, Honey, let’s talk this out. My love, don’t do this. You can’t ruin this beautiful face.” Lance signed, under the impression that Keith isn’t aware of what he’s saying. Keith, having only 2 weeks of studying could pick up a few words but not the entire phrase. To Keith, Lance had said, “Keith, bees … don’t do it… face mask…?”. Keith just tilted his head in confusion and walked closer and closer. 

“If you are trying to get out of it Lance it's not going to work. I’m just trying to give my _good friend_ a hug. “ Keith said barely above a whisper. Lance’s heart rate picked up the speed as Keith got closer and closer. Lance's back had hit a wall and he realized he had nowhere to run. Keith opened his arms and gave Lance a bone-crushing hug. Keith was distracted, thoroughly covering the boy in slime and didn’t realize that he’s had lifted Lance off of his feet. 

Keith opened his eyes and saw Lance's bright red face, which just so happened to be mere inches away from his own. Keith gulped, “..uh sorry about that”, he set the paladin down and awkwardly shuffled backward. “I’m just going to.. um.. go get cleaned up”. Without another word, Keith scurried out of the room leaving a shocked and confused Lance. 

_What just happened._ Lance thought as he stared at the empty doorway. He shook all thoughts out of his head and walked towards his room to get the slimy goo out of his hair.


End file.
